Rail-joint.



H. BAKER.

- RA IL JOINT. APPLICATION FILED JAN. 8, 1 916.

1,174,468. Patent ed Mar. 7,1916.

Inventor orrron.

HARRY BAKER, or LEBANON, PENNS LVANIA.

RAIL-JOINT.

Application filed January 8, 1916. Serial No. 71,009.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HARRY BAKER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lebanon, in the county of Lebanon and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Rail-Joint, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to rail joints, one of its objects being to provide rails having their ends so shaped as to provide tongues, the tongues on one rail being adapted to lap the webs of the next adjoining rails and to be secured thereto in any manner desired, air spaces being provided between the ends of the rails and between the tongues and the webs of the rails so that air is free to circulate between the parts, thus to prevent injury due to frost which might accumulate between the rails.

With the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed, can be made within the scope of what is claimed, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings the preferred form of the invention has been shown.

In said drawings :Figure 1 is a side elevation of a rail joint embodying the present improvements. Fig. 2 is a section on line A-B Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a section on line 0-D Fig. 2. Fig. 4: is a perspective view of one end of a rail embodying the present improvements.

Referring to the figures by characters of reference 1 designates base flanges of a rail and this rail includes the usual web 2 and head or ball 3. In the drawings, only one end of each rail has been illustrated but it is to be understood that both ends of a rail are the same. Each end is thickened as at 4 and has a tongue 5 extending therefrom, this tongue being formed with a base flange extension 6 and with a supporting flange 7. The supporting flange is adapted to fit close against the bottom of the head of the adjoining rail, while the base flange extension 6 is adapted to rest upon one of the base Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. a, rare.

flanges of the adjoining rail. Formed along the inner side of the tongue 5 is a channel 8 and the end of the web of the rail is cut away diagonally, as at 9 so as to provide a diagonal channel. As all of the rails used are to be duplicates, it will be apparent that by placing each rail opposite each of the adjoining rails, the webs of the two rails can be brought together as shown in Fig. 2 and the tongue at each end of each rail will engage and lap the side of the web of the next adjoining rail. Furthermore the diagonal channels vor recesses 9 in the meeting ends of the webs will register so as to form a connecting passage through which air is free to circulate from the channel 8 in one tongue to the channel 8 in the other tongue at the joint.

The rails can be fastened together in any manner desired. For example, a bolt 10 can be extended transversely through each tongue 5 and the adjacent web 2 and in addition thereto a latch 11 may be pivotally connected to each web by means of a rivet 12 or in any other suitable manner, this cam being adapted to lap the tongue 5 of the adjoining rail so as to hold said tongue tight against the web to which the latch is secured. An additional fastening means comprises a spike 13 extending downwardly through registering openings 14L in one of the base flanges 1 and in the base flange extension 6. While in the drawings the joint has been shown provided with all three forms of fastening means, it is to be understood that any two of these means can be used or, if preferred, any one of them can be used. In any event an eflicient connection will be set up between the parts.

WVhat is claimed is j A rail joint including abutting like rails, each including a web, base flanges, a head, each end of the web being thickened, tongues extending from the thickened ends of the webs and having longitudinal grooves in their inner faces in communication with diagonal grooves in the ends of the webs, each tongue having a base flange extension adapted to lap the base flange of the adjoining rail,'there being registering openings within said extension and the lapped portion of the base of the rail, said openings being adapted to receive a spike, and means for fastening each tongue to the Web of the my own I have hereto afiixed my signature rail lapped thereby, said fastening means inin the presence of two Witnesses.

eluding a latch pivotally connected to the T Web of one rail and adapted to swing into v HARRY BAKER" 5 lapped relation with the tongue on the op- Witnesses:

posed rail. ALLEN G. Ross,

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as DANIEL ZELLERS.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. G. 

